Last Week’s Jams (1.29 – 2.2)

If you were anywhere near the musical interwebs last week, then you were given a lot of gifts; there was new music from the likes of Six Organs of Admittance, Camera Obscura, Ducks Ltd and more…all of which feature in this rendition of Last Week’s Jams. It was a pretty solid week for the ATX too, with new music from Water Damage, Holy Wire, Broken Gold…plus a Touch Girl Apple Blossom video from their latest EP. Bonus points go to acts like Savak, Cool Sounds and Torrey for adding further joy to my listening rotation. We also mentioned some Bandcamp recommendations for True Green, Flight Mode, TVXP and Fuvk. Kick in below for all the sweet jams we’ve got in one easy listening spot.

Ducks Ltd Share New Single

For a band that’s spent the better part of their career banging out jangling adjacent pop rock, the new Ducks Ltd single should be a bit of a surprise to listeners, though not necessarily a bad thing. For nearly two minutes, the band spend their time in a more casual land, carefully picking on the guitar with little atmospheric flourishes bubbling to the surface occasionally; it’s presented with zero percussive element, but it’s nice to see a little left turn in the midst of an album cycle. Drums do kick in, and the song opens up a bit, but at that point, the vocals become just another layer as the band builds a bit of depth to their tune. Harm’s Way is out February 9th via Carpark Records.

Last Week’s Jams (1.2 – 1.5)

We swept back into the New Year with a bunch of tunes last week, though technically we were only working 4 days, so not knee deep in jams as we expect to be here for the next few months. New music from David Nance and Ducks Ltd ruled, but there were some left-field gems lurking like My Best Unbeaten Brother and Camille Benatre, to name a few. I keep coming back to the Seasonal Falls and Red Sleeping Beauty tunes too. Not a bunch, but a damn fine collection of rock n’ roll, even including Austin’s Thanks Light. Stream some hits below.

Ducks Ltd Share Train Full of Gasoline

It’s crazy to think of the meteoric rise of Ducks Ltd; I mean just a few years they were “unlimited” in their duck quotient! This new single holds tight to some of their earliest stylings, using a thumping beat and infectious guitar licks to lead you into the core of the song. But, that’s sort of where they’ve grown; opening the track into a bit more of a punchy bit of pop rock, coated in these atmospheric nods to their dreamier beginnings. As they prepare Harm’s Way, its clear that they’ve pushed their indiepop tendencies to the background, hoping we can all latch onto their bopping grooves from here on out. I’m in, and I’ll be looking forward to the LP when it drops on February 9th via Carpark Records.

Last Week’s Jams (11.27 – 12.1)

I know Spotify is the devil, so please pass judgment knowing that I know it’s the devil, but I can’t turn my back on the beast…not to mention, the ease of access for everyone, which is where Spotify dominates the market. Alas, yes, I’m using Spotify for my playlist…until Bancamp offers me something better, but even they can’t be trusted anymore! So, I’ll just wrap up last week on my one! ATH Wrapped! We covered a lot of music, with some heavy-hitters like Real Estate, JAMC and Ducks Ltd. popping off with new stuff. There was a ton of tuneage from Australia: Pop Filter, Sachet, The Brights, Alluvial Nuggets and Good Morning. Plus, I’m flipping a coin between the Umbrellas and Bolis Pupul for my fave track of the week. What’s yours? Find out below!

Ducks Ltd. Announce New LP

Seems like only yesterday when we were writing about Ducks Unlimited, but the last few years they’ve been operating under Ducks Ltd, charming folks with their sharp guitar licks and indiepop tendencies. Today they offer a fresh track, letting us know there’s a brand new LP on the horizon in February. The duo have gathered friends from Ratboys and Dehd, among others, to flesh out their sound, warning us that we should expect a big sound on their second full-length LP. Harm’s Way will be out on February 9th via Carpark Records…and based on the first single, folks are already lining up at the shops to grab a copy.

Last Week’s Jams, Today (1.24 – 1.28)

It’s always great to start out the week by looking back upon the week that was, and while perhaps not an abundance of tunes like there was the previous week, there was definitely great musical news. Papercuts announced a new LP, with two new songs from the record, and both are here for fun below! Plus, Finnish outfit Rules dropped a new single, and I just can’t stop raving about Lewsberg and Apollo Ghosts. And somehow it all gets wrapped up with a new Ducks Ltd single? I’ll take it. Revisit last week with us!

Ducks Ltd. Share Sheets of Grey Single

If you talked to anyone that picked up Modern Fiction last year they’ll likely tell you there’s not a bad tune on the Ducks Ltd. LP; it’s non-stop jangling goodness. So if you go back to their debut EP, the band are currently operating at a high level, incapable of writing a bad song. Thus, they jump right back in with a brand new single to take on the road for their Spring tour with Nation of Language. Jumping off with a pounding rhythm and those swirly-whirly guitar jangles, they suck you right into the pop storm. My ear keeps getting drawn to this underlying guitar line that’s super bright, reminding me in a way of some Field Mice vibes.

Top Albums of 2021

Honestly, I’m pretty over lists at this point. They’re arbitrary and don’t really reflect anything but someone’s tastes, except here where they reflect the tastes of three individuals…because that’s how we roll. So, take this list with a grain of salt. These are the records we thought were the best, which mostly just means these are the ones we listened to on repeat throughout the year! Feel free to leave a comment on what you think we missed, or why we’re dumb; we love good comment trolls.

Also, because this list is really about crediting the art that made us happy, we wanted it to make you happy too, so we included purchasing links where we could. Read more

Last Week’s Jams, Today (September 13 – 17)

Last week I might have gotten a little carried away; my wife and newborn son were spending a lot of time resting, so I was just hanging out writing about songs all week…something a teacher, soccer coach, dad and label owner typically can’t do. So, this week’s playlist of last week’s hits might be a little longer than usual, but you’re going to be all the better for it. I hope you have a wonderful Monday my friends, and enjoy the jams here!

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